01/29/2015JAPAN - SYRIA - ISLAM Anxious hours in Tokyo, as Islamic State ultimatum expires Terrorists still hold a Japanese hostage, Kenji Goto Jogo, and a Jordanian pilot, Lt Muath al-Kaseasbeh. Negotiations are set to expire at sunset (Syrian time). Terrorists want the release of failed suicide bomber Sajida al-Rishawi. Helpless, Tokyo leaves negotiations in Jordanian hands. Tokyo
(AsiaNews) - The Japanese government announced that it would consult with
Jordan over the hostages held by the Islamic State (IS). The terrorist
group holds Japanese reporter Kenji Goto Jogo and Jordanian pilot Muath
al-Kaseasbeh. This comes as IS's third ultimatum expired.
In...
01/29/2015EGYPT - ISLAM For Catholic Church spokesman, al-Sisi's Egypt is more liberal on new churches and freedom of expression The government has issued construction permits for a new church in New Cairo and two in Upper Egypt. Some permit applications go back 8-10 years. Mubarak never favoured church construction. After the elections, the new parliament is required to upgrade legislation governing the construction of places of worship. Representatives of Christian Churches drafted the bill. A Christian family law is also on the drawing board.
01/29/2015VATICAN Pope: God saves everyone personally, but "as a people", not "just me" and "my group" "There is a danger of forgetting that He saved us individually, but as part of a people. A people. Always the Lord saves us as part of a people”. We must not "privatize" salvation, "I have to ask myself whether I speak and communicate the faith; whether I speak and communicate hope; whether I speak, do and communicate charity”.
01/29/2015ISRAEL-LEBANON-SYRIA Apparent calm on the border, after the death of two Israeli and one UN soldier Increased Israeli troops on the border. Military aircraft patrol the area. The Spanish ambassador to the UN blames Israel for the death of the UNIFIL soldier. Ban Ki-moon calls for calm and restraint on the parties to avoid an escalation.
01/28/2015EGYPT Braving Arab-Islamic tradition, Egyptian women are beginning to use the bicycle Most men in the Arab world's largest Sunni nation view women who ride a bicycle as "shameless". However, despite the traffic, poor safety and lack of bike lanes in Cairo, riding saves time and money (for gas). Go Bike encourages cycling. President al-Sisi did the same by taking part in a cycling marathon.
01/28/2015ISRAEL - LEBANON - SYRIA Israel and Hizbollah trade fire after Israeli soldiers are wounded After Hizbollah shells Israeli military convoy, Israel shells Lebanese border villages. Tensions rose after an Israeli attack killed six Hizbollah militants and an Iranian general. Overnight, Israeli planes hit Syrian bases near Quneitra and the Damascus International Airport.
01/28/2015SAUDI ARABIA A forest of crosses and names of martyrs in the desert of Saudi Arabia A Franco-Saudi archaeological team is responsible for the discovery. Prof Frédéric Imbert dated the graffiti to 470-475, a time when anti-Christian persecution began, culminating under the usurper Yusuf. Even the Qur'an refers to it indirectly. The findings show how far Christianity had spread at the time, until the arrival of Islam.
01/28/2015VATICAN Pope: the absence of a father, an evil that affects the family and society "At first, it was perceived as a liberation: liberation from the father-master figure, from the father as a representative of the law that is imposed from the outside". "Sometimes it seems fathers no longer know what place they should occupy in the family and how to educate children. So, when in doubt, they abstain, they withdraw and neglect their responsibilities, perhaps taking refuge in an unlikely relationship 'on par' with their children". Even the civil community neglects or badly exercises its responsibility towards young people, leaving them "orphans of safe streets to play in, orphans of teachers to trust, orphans of ideals”.
01/28/2015LEBANON-MIDDLE EAST Patriarchs of the East: Peace requires an end to terrorism, help for refugees, resolution of Israeli-Palestinian problem by Paul Dakiki An ecumenical meeting in Bkerke to address the difficulties faced by Christian communities. Attended by representatives of Catholic, Orthodox, Armenian, Protestant denominations. Appeal to the Arab and the international community to stop financing and arming terrorists. The need to increase aid to refugees and to hasten their return to their homes. The urgency of electing a president for Lebanon.
01/28/2015JAPAN - SYRIA - ISLAM Tokyo, leaders of all religions pray for hostages held by Islamic State About 80 Muslim, Christian and Buddhist religious gathered outside the office of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to condemn the kidnapping of Kenji Goto Jogo and terrorism by Muslims. A new video shows the Christian reporter and announces: "Less than 24 hours to save him and Jordanian Lieutenant Muath al-Kaseasbeh". Japanese official: "We are incompetent, all we can do is ask for help in Amman."
01/27/2015VATICAN Pope: Lent, a time of personal and communal renewal to defeat the globalization of indifference Lenten Message of Francis. In the communion of saints, in this sharing in holy things, no one possesses anything alone, but shares everything with others. " those places where the Church is present, especially our parishes and our communities, may become islands of mercy in the midst of the sea of indifference". "Anyone who wishes to be merciful must have a strong and steadfast heart, closed to the tempter but open to God. A heart which lets itself be pierced by the Spirit so as to bring love along the roads that lead to our brothers and sisters".
01/27/2015TURKEY - SYRIA Kurdish victory in Kobane worries Erdogan The Islamic state had threatened the city since September. Some 1,800 people died in the fighting with tens of thousands made refugees. Turkey's ambiguity stems from its fear that a Kurdish autonomous region might emerge in northern Syria.
01/27/2015VATICAN Pope: "It is not easy" to do God’s will, for this we must pray to recognize it and follow it Even for Jesus it wasn’t easy when he faced temptations in the wilderness or in the Gardens of Olives. It wasn’t easy either for his disciples, some of whom left him because they did not understand what “doing the Father’s will” meant. And neither is it easy for us, when each day we are faced with a tray of so many different options".
01/26/2015VATICAN Pope: Mainly women transmit the faith It is ' the path chosen by Jesus, "who wanted to have a mother. "All of us have received the gift of faith. We have to safeguard it." Two things oppose our "living faith": "the spirit of fear and shame." . "We ask the Lord for the grace to have a sincere faith, a faith that is non-negotiable depending on the opportunities that come.
01/26/2015VATICAN Pope Francis, "rabbits" and the colonization of families by Bernardo Cervellera The controversy over Catholics who have children "like rabbits" has overshadowed the Pope’s message about ideological attacks on the family a "colonization" to be freed of. The UN and development agencies funds used for "reproductive health". Collaboration with other religious traditions, including Jews and Muslims vital to counter this "ideological colonization".
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